How Alexander Isak became Newcastle's most important player
There was just something about Alexander Isak’s goal for Newcastle against Everton on Tuesday.
From the dart into channel between the centre-backs, the speed to stay ahead of Jarrad Branthwaite, the chop back inside, the soft feet to jink between Branthwaite and the recovering James Tarkowski, and finally, the poise to guide the finish past Jordan Pickford. It was beautiful; enough to make you applaud, regardless of your footballing allegiance.
Simply put: the goal was "very Isak." If we were to assign goals to strikers based on how well they summed up their style, then this one represents the Swede’s trademark.
The entire manoeuvre - which, despite all the different moving parts to it, only took about five seconds to elapse - showcased just how complete a striker he is. What he can do with the ball can take you from 0-60 in the blink of an eye, turning standard passages of play into goals all by himself.
Perhaps that’s the most striking thing about him: He doesn’t need to rely on anyone to create for him; he can just roll his sleeves up (figuratively) and sort things out himself. That’s an incredibly attractive quality in a forward - we expect more of them in every facet of the game nowadays, in the same way centre-backs need to be more than headers and duels, and goalkeepers must be more than reflex stops.
That’s why the goal tally - 15 in the Premier League, 19 in all competitions - only tells half the story for Isak, who is so good, solely focusing on a very successful scoring season does him an injustice in terms of his overall impact.
So with that in mind, let’s look at a few alternative statistics to measure the other side to him.
He’s registered 10 successful take-ons that have led to shots, either taken by himself or a teammate. For context, Marcus Rashford leads the league with 15, and it’s a category that is generally dominated by wingers. Next on the list is Mohamed Kudus with 14, while Raheem Sterling has 12.
Isak’s total of 10 is close to double the next-best in a Newcastle United context, as Anthony Gordon has just six, despite playing approximately 700 more league minutes. He’s also carried the ball into the penalty box 23 times, the second-most among colleagues, which again hints at his ability to get himself into positive positions, rather than relying on being unlocked by another.
This is a golden trait to have, as it mitigates the issues you face when the supporting cast changes. Given the sheer number of injuries the Magpies have sustained this season, with the wing corps among the most affected, Isak’s compatibility with just about anyone has kept things on an even keel.
Of course, all of this can be appreciated a little more amid a backdrop of goals. No matter how good you are at the other stuff, life is always better for a striker when you’re scoring freely. A recent glut of five in four has lifted him to 15 for the campaign, which is good for the joint-third-highest tally in the league; he’s almost bang in line with his xG (14.72) too.
Another five in the remaining eight games would take him to the fabled 20 mark - goalscorer’s paradise - and become the first Magpie to do so at the top level since… yep, you guessed it, Alan Shearer, who knocked out three consecutive 20+ goal campaigns between 2001 and 2004. Dwight Gayle exceeded the 20-goal mark in 2017, but it was in the second tier.
Naturally, this sort of form comes at a cost if you’re Newcastle, and we’ve already seen the Swede linked with a £60m+ move away from St. James’ Park this summer. Eddie Howe has been firm in the face of those rumours, insisting the prized striker will stay, but reports suggest a big sale might be needed to stay in line with PSR, and Isak is one of two prime candidates, with Bruno Guimaraes the other.
But while Bruno may be the better overall player, Isak might be harder to replace. After all, evidence suggests you could end up waiting 20 years to find another striker like him.
